Racing to New Heights
The next morning, May was on the phone with Lisia, and they were talking about her next strategy for the contest's appeals round. "You know, I'm actually impressed by your strategic mind for contests," Lisia said. "You're even better than I was when I first started."
"Thanks, I just hope that I can win the Verdanturf Contest," May said.
"Oh, didn't you hear, the Verdanturf Contest and the Fallarbor Contest were switched on the schedule. The Fallarbor Contest is in half a week, so that should give you enough time to get there," Lisia said.
"Oh, when and why did that happen?" May asked, surprised at the shift of schedule.
"Well, apparently the Verdanturf contest hall is being renovated, but they were set back due to some mistakes made by the construction crew," Lisia said. "Why they decided to make renovations, I'll never know."
May laughed a little. "Thanks for the heads up Lis; I guess Brendan and I will be heading to Fallarbor. See you there!"
"Ciao!" Lisia said as she hung up. May put away her phone and went to join Brendan, Gwen, and all the other Pokémon for breakfast. Wally had decided to go home and show his aunt and uncle his badge, hopefully convincing them that he was able to be a good trainer.
"So, what did Lisia have to say?" Brendan asked as he finished a bite of his zesty breakfast burrito.
"Well, turns out the Fallarbor Contest has been switched with the Verdanturf Contest due to renovations in Verdanturf's contest hall. So, it seems we're on our way to Fallarbor Town now," May said.
That shouldn't be a problem. Besides, we were going to go through Verdanturf after we beat the Lavaridge Gym so we could get to Petalburg, right Brendan? Gwen said.
"Actually, yes, that was pretty much the plan, but taking a break in Verdanturf for a contest sounds great to me," Brendan said with a grin.
May smiled. "Thanks for being okay with this," she said.
"Why wouldn't we be?" Brendan said, taking a sip of coffee. "Besides, that just means that we get to explore more of Hoenn sooner." May hugged Brendan, almost making him spill. "Ok, you're welcome, but be careful, I don't want hot coffee on my crotch!" May laughed as she let go and sat next to Brendan. She had finished her breakfast before talking to Lisia, but she wasn't above stealing a bite of Brendan's burrito. Brendan just laughed slightly. "You just love to push my buttons, don't you?"
"If I didn't do that, you'd think something was wrong," May said after she cleared out her mouth. Brendan just kissed her on the top of her head.
"I guess I can't stay mad at you," Brendan said as he hugged her closer. He finished his breakfast burrito and coffee, making sure the Pokémon had all finished their food before getting up. "Well, we'd better get going!" He recalled his Pokémon while May did the same with hers.
"Alright, let's head north," May said. Brendan followed her out of the Pokémon Center, Gwen right behind them.
"By the way, how are you feeling after yesterday, Gwen?" Brendan asked.
I'm great, just a little sore, she said rubbing the back of her neck.
"Well, that'll fade with light training and a nice rest from intense battles," Brendan said.
Let's just hope that's the case, Gwen said. With that, they the Pokémon Center, and were about to make their way to the route 111 gate when May stopped.
"Damn, we almost forgot to get bikes!" May said.
"Wow, good job remembering that, let's go get bikes," Brendan said. He glanced at a nearby map and saw that the bike shop was only a five minute walk away from where they were. They walked to the east, and soon saw the sign for the shop. It was really hard to miss due to it being a gigantic bicycle with the word "Rydel" on both sides.
They entered only to see a man in a business suit by a bike display rack. "Well hello there," he said. I am Rydel, the owner of this bike shop. How can I be of service to you?"
"We'd like to buy a couple bikes," Brendan said.
Rydel scanned over them with a look briefly. "I see, well, there's one issue with your request. That is your use of the word buy."
"What do you mean?" May asked.
"Well, you see, I've been hurting for business recently because nearly everybody in Mauville has one of my bikes already. However, I think we can get a mutually beneficial arrangement here. I will give you one of my bikes and then you ride it around, and advertise for me," Rydel said.
Brendan looked at May, and shrugged. "Well, so long as there's no catch, I can't see any problem with that," Brendan said.
"Well, I'm not sure you can really call this a catch, but I have two different types of bikes available. You just need to pick your preference," Rydel said. "The first bike is the Mach Bike, it's made for speed and racing. The other is the Acro Bike, which is more of a trick bike."
"I'll take the Acro Bike," Brendan said.
"And I will take the Mach Bike," May said.
"Alright," Rydel said. He walked over to a screen, pushed a few buttons, and two square remotes with a single button on them. "These are the bikes, they're collapsible, just hit the button and it expand into a bike. It won't open indoors, however.
"Alright, then let's go outside and check them out!" May said. Brendan followed her out the door, Gwen deciding to sit on Brendan's shoulders.
"Alright, I'll open mine first," Brendan said as he put the bike on the ground and hit the button. In an instant the bike had unfolded transformers style and was standing beautifully. It was orange with short handlebars. "Looks really nice, but is there anything with a seat for Gwen here?" he said.
"Actually, I do have a small Pokémon seat here," Rydel said. "But are you sure you want that, because once she evolves she'll be tall enough to ride a bike of her own."
Actually, Brendan, I think I can just stay on your shoulders. I can hold on pretty well, Gwen said.
"Okay, good point, both of you," Brendan said. "But Gwen, if you start to fall off, I will have to put you in your Pokéball."
Gwen gasped and covered her mouth. You wouldn't, she said in mock fear.
"Anyway, my turn!" May said as she put her bike on the ground and hit the button. It opened up just like Brendan's did, only her bike was blue with lower, racing handlebars. "Wow that looks awesome. And the frame is so light."
"Well, it has to be to go faster," Rydel said. May got on her bike, while Brendan got on his, Gwen sitting on his shoulders. "By the way, if either of you two want to switch bikes, just stop by and I'll make the switch in no time at all."
"Thanks Rydel," Brendan said before turning to May. "I'll race you to Route 112!"
"Oh you're on!" May said, a competitive gleam in her eye. Brendan began to pedal hard, making some distance between himself and May. That was until May started pedaling. Her Mach Bike shot forward much faster than Brendan's Acro Bike could've. She caught up with no trouble at all, and was soon passing Brendan.
"Wow, I should've picked the Mach Bike!" Brendan said.
Too late for that now, just catch up to her! Gwen said.
"Alright, hold on tight," Brendan said as he watched May pass through the gate to Route 111. He started to pedal harder, shifting to a lower gear as he did. He quickly caught up to May, but she simply shot him a taunting glance as she shifted into a higher gear, and while she temporarily slowed down, she quickly increased her speed.
"You've gotta do better than that!" May called back.
Brendan smiled as he followed her example, switching to a higher gear. He pushed harder and soon caught up, sticking close behind May. Brendan glanced over his girlfriend, realizing just how much fun he was having with her. He felt like he wanted to do things like this with her for a long time to come. "Man, I am so glad I moved to Hoenn!" he shouted. Both trainers could now see the sign for Route 112, and they knew that the race was almost done. Brendan got a confident look on his face as he began to pedal even harder than before.
Damn it, Brendan, I'm sitting in your backpack next time you choose to ride a bike! Gwen shouted. Brendan just laughed, but soon realized that May was right next to him. She wasn't about to let him win.
Brendan smiled. A little more speed was okay with him. The sign was within a few feet, all they had to do was cross the "finish line." Just when Brendan thought the victory was his, May shot forward, winning by mere feet.
"WOOOOOHOOOO!" May said. "How'd my dust taste?"
"Yeah, you won. Nice race. I guess I should've picked the Mach Bike," Brendan said with a slight chuckle.
"EXCUSE ME!" said a vaguely familiar voice. Brendan just couldn't remember where he knew the voice from. He turned around and saw a woman in a fashionable blue sleeveless shirt and a microphone in her hand. She was followed closely by a man in jeans, a plain white t-shirt, and a red hat. The man also carried a news camera.
"Oh, hello," May said. "Aren't you Gabby from PokeVision News?"
"I am, my cameraman, Ty, and I couldn't help but notice you two racing earlier, but I have to wonder if you two are as good with Pokémon training as you are with cycling," Gabby said.
"And I'm just doing what the lady tells me," Ty said.
"So, what do you say to a quick double battle?" Gabby said. "If it's intense, then we might air it on PokeVision's new series In Search of Trainers."
"Wow, so if we battle you, then we could get on PokeVision?" Brendan asked. "Man, first free bikes to help advertise, now a chance to gain some fame. Today just keeps getting better, doesn't it?"
"Well, I'm okay with it if you are!" May said.
"Alright, let's put our best feet forward," Brendan said as he dismounted his bike, pushing a button to make it fold up again. May did the same, and they both pocketed their bikes once that was done.
"So Miranda and Gwen?" May asked.
"You know it," Brendan said as Gwen leapt off his shoulders. May took out Miranda's Pokéball. Brendan then turned to address Gabby and Ty. "We're ready whenever you are!"
"Ty, are we rolling?" Gabby asked as she pulled out her Pokéball.
Ty did the same. "Yep, the camera is rolling. Let's get started," he said.
"Perfect, let's begin. Let's go Phoebe!" Gabby said as she threw out her Pokéball, which released a purple Pokémon with yellow ears, small eyes and it looked a little timid.
"A Whismur, huh?" May said quietly. "This should be interesting."
Ty threw his Pokéball. "Let's go Vinny!" he called, his Pokéball unleashing a Magnemite.
Brendan just shook his head. "This will be easier than I expected," he said. "Now, let's show them what we're made of. Gwen, you're up!" Gwen skipped onto the battlefield, ready to battle.
"Miranda, you're up!" May said, just opening her Pokéball, not bothering to throw it. The Combusken came out of her Pokéball, ready to go.
"Alright, I'll start us off," Gabby said. "Phoebe, use Uproar!"
"And Vinny, use Metal Sound!" Ty called out. Phoebe took a breath before shouting extremely loudly, and Vinny began to produce what sounded like metal nails on a chalkboard.
"Alright, Gwen, use Psychic on Phoebe!" Brendan said while covering his ears slightly. Gwen's eyes glowed briefly as she grabbed and threw Phoebe back, into a nearby tree.
"Miranda, use Double Kick on Vinny!" May said, her ears starting to hurt too. Miranda leapt at the Magnemite. As she got in close, she lashed out with a vicious roundhouse kick, doing serious damage before she fired an axe kick, sending Vinny crashing into the ground. Both Phoebe and Magnemite were out of the fight now.
"…W-was that all?" Brendan said, not trying to be rude. "That seemed way too easy."
Gabby just sighed. "We usually hold our own for a few minutes. You two are the first to beat us with just one hit to each Pokémon. That's really extraordinary strength. If you two don't mind, could we get an interview?"
May and Brendan exchanged looks, Gwen leaping back onto Brendan's shoulder. "Sure, I'm okay with it," Brendan said. "What about you May?"
"Definitely," May said.
"Alright, so first question for both of you is you name and where you're from," Gabby said.
"I'm May Birch, from Littleroot Town," she said.
"And I'm Brendan Maple. I'm originally from Goldenrod City, but I just moved to Littleroot Town about a month ago," he said.
And I'm Gwen! I'm from a hidden village on Route 102! Gwen said enthusiastically, earning a look of surprise from both Gabby and Ty.
"Yes, she can speak telepathically, we get that response a lot," Brendan said.
"I see," Gabby said with a slight laugh. "Well, tell us, where did you learn to battle so well?"
May started. "Actually, I'm a coordinator. Most people who follow the contest tour may know me. Anyway, my father is Professor Birch, and he made sure I stayed in school and learned as much as I could from books and classes about Pokémon," she said.
"Wow, so you've been around Pokémon your whole life," Gabby said. "And what about you, Brendan?"
"Well, I'm a trainer aiming to win the Hoenn League title, and eventually become the Champion," Brendan said. "I was also in school for a while because my dad wanted the same thing that May's dad wanted for her."
"And you said your last name is Maple, is that right? Why does that sound so familiar to me?" Gabby said.
"That's because my dad is the new gym leader in Petalburg," Brendan said.
"Oh, of course, I should've remembered that!" Gabby said, slightly disappointed with herself. "I mean I interviewed him only shortly after he arrived. I should've remembered that."
"It's okay. My family is still pretty new to the region," Brendan said.
"Well, where are you two planning to go from here?" Gabby asked.
"We're on our way to Fallarbor Town for the contest there," May said.
"Well, since we will be there to cover that contest, I guess we will see you there," Gabby said with a slight smile. "Thank you so much for your time. I'm sure this will make it onto PokeVision."
"You're welcome, hope to see you there!" May said. The news crew duo left, heading for Mauville City. May then turned back to Brendan. "So, do you want to walk or ride from here?"
"Well, we will be going through a mountain, so I think going on foot would be better," Brendan said.
"Yeah, good point. Besides, we can't go through the desert since there's a massive sandstorm there almost constantly," May said.
"Oh, really? That sounds like a place where I can find some really strong Pokémon," Brendan thought out loud.
"You need some special goggles to even go on that part of route 111," May said.
"I see, well, as much sense as that doesn't make, I won't question it," Brendan said as they went toward what the PokeNav map marked as Mt. Chimney. Up the stairs was the mouth of a cave, and a building that housed a cable car to get up the mountain. Gwen, however, was the first to point out an oddity.
Hey, why are there two men standing in front of the cable car entrance? She said.
Brendan looked over where Gwen was indicating and saw two men wearing strange, identical outfits. They were red with black "M"s on the front that were in the shape of a mountain, and they wore red hoods.
"Oh no, please tell me that's not the Team Magma that Team Aqua has been going on about," Brendan said.
"Let's steer clear of them for now. Something tells me that we don't want to even bother with them right now," May said as she led the way to the mouth of the cave. "Anyway, this is Fiery Path, it should lead us to the other side of the route so we can get to Fallarbor Town," May said.
"Perfect, let's get through here, because those Magma guys are giving me evil eyes," Brendan said. May laughed slightly as she followed Brendan into the cave.
It was three hours later when the two trainers finally got out of the cave, and both were sweating like crazy, and Gwen was dragging her feet.
"Oh Arceus, that was one hot tunnel!" May said.
"Uh-huh," Brendan said, not even trying to form a coherent sentence.
Well, it was either that, or get pelted with sand the entire time, Gwen said.
"Yeah, I guess you're right about that," Brendan said. "Still, there were so many Slugma and Koffing. It was good battle experience for Turk and the others, but still, I could barely breath in there after the second hour. "Let me know when you guys are ready to get moving again," Brendan said.
May sat up and looked at Brendan. "Well, if nothing else, we now know to avoid Fiery Path at all costs, since it is literally under an active volcano," she said.
"Duly noted," Brendan said.
Gwen just sat for a moment before levitating herself to her feet. I think we need to get moving soon, she said. Something just tells me that we want to get moving as soon as possible.
"A-alright," May said as she and Brendan stood up. "Let's get going!"
They quickly left the exit of the cave and made their way to the northern part of Route 111. There they saw a line of trees that slightly obscured a house in the distance. Closer to them was a man wearing an outfit that was a mixture between a hipster and a cowboy. He was simply staring the tree in front of him, like he was pondering something.
"Excuse me, sir, what are you doing?" Brendan asked. The man jumped slightly and turned around.
"Oh, geez, this must look weird to see somebody staring intently at a tree. Well, I'm actually considering making a secret base here. See, there are some low hanging vines, so with the use of the move Secret Power, you can make a living space in trees like this one," he said.
"Wow, so it's like a secret tree house?" May asked.
"Yes, but you can also use a cave, or even a large pile of grass," he said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a TM disc. "Here, take this. It's TM43, it teaches Secret Power. Use this to make your own secret base." With that, he departed.
"Wait, didn't you say you were going to make a Secret Base here?" May called.
"Wouldn't be much of a secret if I made it now that you know about the location, now would it?" the guy called back. "See you both later!"
"Well, that was awfully nice of him," May said as she put the disc into her bag. "But I don't think I want a secret base in a tree. Maybe we should make ours somewhere else."
Wow, making a Secret Base together, almost like buying a house, Gwen said in a teasing tone.
"Oh, you can just shut up!" May said in a teasing tone as well.
Brendan laughed a little as they began to move north again. "This must be how May sees my interactions with Gwen," he muttered to himself. Gwen then teleported onto Brendan's shoulders, ready to relax for a while.
They all walked for almost an hour before they got to Route 113. This route, however, was really odd in Brendan's opinion. "Is it snowing on this route?" he asked, a bit bewildered.
"No, not at all," May said, giving him a weird look. "Hoenn is in the tropics, and the only mountain is a volcano. Why would there be snow?"
"I don't know, I was just wondering since it looks like there is snow falling on that route," Brendan said.
Actually that's volcanic ash, Gwen said. It's coming from Mt. Chimney, but it only falls lightly so people aren't in any danger when they're on that route.
"O-okay, but it is getting late, we may have to rest in the middle of the route," Brendan said.
"Well we did just get the TM that pretty much gives us automatic shelter, so that shouldn't be a problem at all," May said.
"Yeah, I guess you're right," Brendan said. "Well then, let's go, with any luck we will get to Fallarbor before night falls, so we can sleep in a Pokémon Center." The two trainers then continued on toward Fallarbor.
Not far away from Brendan and May, in the depths of Mt. Chimney's Jagged Pass, was a tall man with copper-colored hair, a red lab coat and glasses with a multicolored stone on one side of the frames. He was sitting at a desk, writing and signing off on orders. There came a knock at his door.
"Enter!" the man said. The door opened to reveal a woman with darker strawberry blonde hair, almost looking pink, in high heeled boots, and an outfit similar to the grunts, except it was more elegant, and it had yellow horns on the hood. "What is it Courtney?"
"Commander Maxie, you asked to be informed about that boy that Team Aqua has had trouble with recently, correct?" Courtney said.
Maxie looked up, putting his pen down. "Proceed."
Courtney pulled an SD card from her pocket, and handed it to Maxie. "This video just aired on PokeVision's new show, In Search of Trainers. There are two trainers in this film, and they both fit the descriptions that Archie has been telling his underlings."
Maxie inserted the SD card into his computer, quickly opening the video and watching it closely. "I see. And the boy does indeed have a Kirlia that prefers to stay outside her Pokéball, and can project her thoughts with telepathy. If we were Team Rocket we'd definitely be after that Pokémon," Maxie mused.
"Sir, what do you want to do about this kid?" Courtney asked.
"While they haven't interfered with our plans, and they obviously don't support Team Aqua, I doubt they'll be joining our cause. Just by their short battle, I can tell that's not their personality," Maxie said before pausing to think. "We have a team that's heading to Fallarbor to convince that Dr. Cozmo to get us a meteorite, correct?"
"Yes sir, we do," Courtney said.
"Good; send them these pictures of both Brendan and May, along with the following orders: they are only to observe those two unless they interfere with any of our plans. If these children get in our way, bring me one of them so I can give the other a message."
"Yes sir," Courtney said.
"And Courtney," Maxie said, earning his lieutenant's attention. "Very good work finding this file." Courtney smiled at the praise once she had turned to leave the room. When she did Maxie spoke to himself. "Brendan Maple, you'd better play your cards right, or you will feel the wrath of Team Magma in full force."
Hey everybody, so I had a lot of free time today, so I decided "hey, I'll crank out another chapter." Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed it. Please leave a review about what you liked and where I can improve. Please be honest, but don't be mean.
Until next time – jmoul18.
